Meet the Minnesotan who integrated the NFL
Even if you’re not a football fan, you may have heard that the 2023 Super Bowl was the the very first with two Black quarterbacks. That’s a big deal.
But did you know the very first Black football player ever in the NFL grew up right here in Minnesota?
Back in the early 20th century Bobby Marshall played for the Minneapolis Deans. He was coach, captain and quarterback.
As part of the MPR News history series, “Minnesota Now and Then,” MPR News host Cathy Wurzer spoke with Terry McConnell, the author of “Breaking Through the Line: Bobby Marshall, the NFL’s First African American Player.”
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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Audio transcript
CATHY WURZER: Even if you're not a football fan, you may have heard that yesterday's Super Bowl was the very first with two Black quarterbacks. Now, that is a big deal. But did you know the very first Black football player ever in the NFL grew up right here in Minnesota?
Back in the early 20th century, Bobby Marshall played for the Minneapolis Deans. In fact, he was coach, captain, and quarterback. As part of our history series, Minnesota Now and Then, we're talking with Terry McConnell. He's written a book called, Breaking Through the Line-- Bobby Marshall, the NFL's First African American Player. Terry is on the line. Welcome to the program.
TERRY MCCONNELL: I'm glad to be here.
CATHY WURZER: Bobby Marshall, as you know, broke a lot of barriers in his life. He was the first Black player in the NFL, as I mentioned, but he was actually the first Black player in any major team sport in the US. So he was the first to integrate any major sport in this country, yet we don't often hear a lot about him. Why is that?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, the media basically forgot about Bobby Marshall in the late '50s and '60s. Now, one thing I wanted to clarify, Bobby Marshall was the first African-American in the 20th century to integrate a major team sport, OK? That's the actual deal. He was the first in the 20th century.
CATHY WURZER: Still a big deal, all right. So what-- go ahead.
TERRY MCCONNELL: Yeah. It's hard to explain why people forgot about him. He was probably as great an athlete as LeBron James or Tom Brady, or any of the superstars, Michael Jordan, of our time. But he was very much forgotten.
CATHY WURZER: What do we know--
TERRY MCCONNELL: So the book is to get him-- to remember him.
CATHY WURZER: I'm glad you wrote the book. What do we know about Bobby Marshall's background. He wasn't born in Minnesota, but he moved here.
TERRY MCCONNELL: That's right. He moved-- he was born in 1880 and soon after his birth, he moved to Minneapolis. His father was a contractor in South Minneapolis. He repaired boilers and did electrical work, plumbing work in the apartment buildings. And Bobby learned that trade growing up, and he helped his father. There were no athletic scholarships, so when Bobby went to the University of Minnesota, he was paying his own way.
CATHY WURZER: And we should say, there was a policy of racial segregation at the U of M at the time, and neither African-Americans or Jews were allowed to live in the dorms. So, I mean, it was kind of a tough time.
TERRY MCCONNELL: That's right. And Bobby Marshall and his best friend, some man named Sig Harris, they were both all-Americans at the University of Minnesota and football. Neither one could live in a dorm because Sig Harris was Jewish and Bobby Marshall was African-American. And that racial segregation policy didn't stop until 1954.
CATHY WURZER: Bobby, of course, was a star on the U of M's football team, and he graduated when he-- after he graduated, he was with the Gophers as an assistant coach, and he had quite a career. Tell me, how did you find out about his story?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, my grandfather was named OC Olsen, and he was the manager of this team, it was a Pro Football team before the NFL called the Minneapolis Deans. One day I was looking at some old photos that my late Aunt Dorothy Rudolph had given me. And I saw a team photo, and there was my grandfather as a young man, he was on the second row near the-- on the right-hand side. And in the middle of the second row was a tall African-American man. I'd heard there was a great African-American player on my grandfather's team, but I didn't know his name. On the back of the picture, it said, Bobby Marshall. So about 2014, I started researching Bobby Marshall, and that's how I got into this.
CATHY WURZER: Wow. So Bobby Marshall graduated from the U of M in, I think what, 1907, he had a law degree. So how did he end up playing with the Minneapolis Deans, he could have been a lawyer?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, he actually was a lawyer, but he was playing sports all year round. Ice hockey in the winter, baseball in the spring and summer, football in the fall, and it was difficult for him to maintain his law career. So he took a job as the grain inspector for the Minnesota State Grain Commission, and that job enabled him to make ends meet and it was actually quite a service he did.
His granddaughter Cathy Washington describes how he went into the granaries with 100-pound weight, and he slept that 100-pound weight on the scale at the granary. And if that scale didn't read 100 pounds, Bobby Marshall knew that the granary officials were cheating the farmers, so he would write up a citation. He protected the rights of farmers in his job. And he did that job about 40 years, and in his retirement, about 1952, the governor of the state came to celebrate his career.
CATHY WURZER: Wow. so he kept playing football, though. I was surprised that he kept playing all those years. When did he retire?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, his last NFL game was in 1925. It was against-- it was for a team called the Duluth Kelleys. Now, that has made Bobby Marshall the oldest starting player in NFL history. He still played-- the early years of the NFL, it was not like today. There were many teams playing, some were NFL teams, some were non-NFL teams, and they would be playing against each other.
So he played a lot of games against NFL teams up till when he was 54. That's when he actually quit football altogether. So he had an amazing longevity, and you could attribute that to the fact that he stayed in shape all the time with baseball, and football, and hockey. There was never any off-season, he was always in training.
CATHY WURZER: So we should say-- so he had this great athletic career at the U of M, he went on to play Pro Football. And I was on the Pro Football Hall of Fame's website, he's not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. How did that happen?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, we've tried. With the help of Mark Craig from the Minneapolis Star Tribune, we have made an application to get him in the Hall of Fame. So far that's been unsuccessful, but I hope we can continue to pursue that. Another way I want to pursue Bobby Marshall's legacy is the scholarship at the University of Minnesota, the Bobby Marshall scholarship. We're in the process of trying to fund this scholarship. We have to come up with $50,000, and we're not up to $50,000 yet, we're a long way from that, but this is one way I hope to promote Bobby Marshall's legacy.
Because the thing about Bobby Marshall, why he's so important, it isn't just that he was a phenomenal athlete, he was a phenomenal person. He mentored Minneapolis youth at the Phyllis Wheatley settlement house. He would make inspiring speeches all over town inspiring people to be at their best. He was a deacon at the Saint Peter's AME Church. I mean, he lived a life of right living, and he's a wonderful role model, and he's my role model. And I just want Bobby Marshall to be known as this wonderful man that he was.
CATHY WURZER: Well, I'm glad you wrote the book, and I'm glad you had the chance to talk with us about Bobby Marshall. Thank you so much, Terry.
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, you're welcome. Thanks for having me.
CATHY WURZER: Terry McConnell is the author of Breaking Through the Line: Bobby Marshall, the NFL's First African American Player. You can find the author and the book at the website bobbymarshallbook.com.
Back in the early 20th century, Bobby Marshall played for the Minneapolis Deans. In fact, he was coach, captain, and quarterback. As part of our history series, Minnesota Now and Then, we're talking with Terry McConnell. He's written a book called, Breaking Through the Line-- Bobby Marshall, the NFL's First African American Player. Terry is on the line. Welcome to the program.
TERRY MCCONNELL: I'm glad to be here.
CATHY WURZER: Bobby Marshall, as you know, broke a lot of barriers in his life. He was the first Black player in the NFL, as I mentioned, but he was actually the first Black player in any major team sport in the US. So he was the first to integrate any major sport in this country, yet we don't often hear a lot about him. Why is that?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, the media basically forgot about Bobby Marshall in the late '50s and '60s. Now, one thing I wanted to clarify, Bobby Marshall was the first African-American in the 20th century to integrate a major team sport, OK? That's the actual deal. He was the first in the 20th century.
CATHY WURZER: Still a big deal, all right. So what-- go ahead.
TERRY MCCONNELL: Yeah. It's hard to explain why people forgot about him. He was probably as great an athlete as LeBron James or Tom Brady, or any of the superstars, Michael Jordan, of our time. But he was very much forgotten.
CATHY WURZER: What do we know--
TERRY MCCONNELL: So the book is to get him-- to remember him.
CATHY WURZER: I'm glad you wrote the book. What do we know about Bobby Marshall's background. He wasn't born in Minnesota, but he moved here.
TERRY MCCONNELL: That's right. He moved-- he was born in 1880 and soon after his birth, he moved to Minneapolis. His father was a contractor in South Minneapolis. He repaired boilers and did electrical work, plumbing work in the apartment buildings. And Bobby learned that trade growing up, and he helped his father. There were no athletic scholarships, so when Bobby went to the University of Minnesota, he was paying his own way.
CATHY WURZER: And we should say, there was a policy of racial segregation at the U of M at the time, and neither African-Americans or Jews were allowed to live in the dorms. So, I mean, it was kind of a tough time.
TERRY MCCONNELL: That's right. And Bobby Marshall and his best friend, some man named Sig Harris, they were both all-Americans at the University of Minnesota and football. Neither one could live in a dorm because Sig Harris was Jewish and Bobby Marshall was African-American. And that racial segregation policy didn't stop until 1954.
CATHY WURZER: Bobby, of course, was a star on the U of M's football team, and he graduated when he-- after he graduated, he was with the Gophers as an assistant coach, and he had quite a career. Tell me, how did you find out about his story?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, my grandfather was named OC Olsen, and he was the manager of this team, it was a Pro Football team before the NFL called the Minneapolis Deans. One day I was looking at some old photos that my late Aunt Dorothy Rudolph had given me. And I saw a team photo, and there was my grandfather as a young man, he was on the second row near the-- on the right-hand side. And in the middle of the second row was a tall African-American man. I'd heard there was a great African-American player on my grandfather's team, but I didn't know his name. On the back of the picture, it said, Bobby Marshall. So about 2014, I started researching Bobby Marshall, and that's how I got into this.
CATHY WURZER: Wow. So Bobby Marshall graduated from the U of M in, I think what, 1907, he had a law degree. So how did he end up playing with the Minneapolis Deans, he could have been a lawyer?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, he actually was a lawyer, but he was playing sports all year round. Ice hockey in the winter, baseball in the spring and summer, football in the fall, and it was difficult for him to maintain his law career. So he took a job as the grain inspector for the Minnesota State Grain Commission, and that job enabled him to make ends meet and it was actually quite a service he did.
His granddaughter Cathy Washington describes how he went into the granaries with 100-pound weight, and he slept that 100-pound weight on the scale at the granary. And if that scale didn't read 100 pounds, Bobby Marshall knew that the granary officials were cheating the farmers, so he would write up a citation. He protected the rights of farmers in his job. And he did that job about 40 years, and in his retirement, about 1952, the governor of the state came to celebrate his career.
CATHY WURZER: Wow. so he kept playing football, though. I was surprised that he kept playing all those years. When did he retire?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, his last NFL game was in 1925. It was against-- it was for a team called the Duluth Kelleys. Now, that has made Bobby Marshall the oldest starting player in NFL history. He still played-- the early years of the NFL, it was not like today. There were many teams playing, some were NFL teams, some were non-NFL teams, and they would be playing against each other.
So he played a lot of games against NFL teams up till when he was 54. That's when he actually quit football altogether. So he had an amazing longevity, and you could attribute that to the fact that he stayed in shape all the time with baseball, and football, and hockey. There was never any off-season, he was always in training.
CATHY WURZER: So we should say-- so he had this great athletic career at the U of M, he went on to play Pro Football. And I was on the Pro Football Hall of Fame's website, he's not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. How did that happen?
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, we've tried. With the help of Mark Craig from the Minneapolis Star Tribune, we have made an application to get him in the Hall of Fame. So far that's been unsuccessful, but I hope we can continue to pursue that. Another way I want to pursue Bobby Marshall's legacy is the scholarship at the University of Minnesota, the Bobby Marshall scholarship. We're in the process of trying to fund this scholarship. We have to come up with $50,000, and we're not up to $50,000 yet, we're a long way from that, but this is one way I hope to promote Bobby Marshall's legacy.
Because the thing about Bobby Marshall, why he's so important, it isn't just that he was a phenomenal athlete, he was a phenomenal person. He mentored Minneapolis youth at the Phyllis Wheatley settlement house. He would make inspiring speeches all over town inspiring people to be at their best. He was a deacon at the Saint Peter's AME Church. I mean, he lived a life of right living, and he's a wonderful role model, and he's my role model. And I just want Bobby Marshall to be known as this wonderful man that he was.
CATHY WURZER: Well, I'm glad you wrote the book, and I'm glad you had the chance to talk with us about Bobby Marshall. Thank you so much, Terry.
TERRY MCCONNELL: Well, you're welcome. Thanks for having me.
CATHY WURZER: Terry McConnell is the author of Breaking Through the Line: Bobby Marshall, the NFL's First African American Player. You can find the author and the book at the website bobbymarshallbook.com.
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